'It's ridiculous': Anxiety about rental prices in Greater Victoria grows as inflation soars

The Capital Region's rental market is sitting at a historically low vacancy rate and adding to that, the cost of those available rentals are at record highs.

"To rent a one-bedroom apartment in Victoria you’ll need to make somewhere between $55,000 and $85,000 a year, depending on the location of the unit," said Paul Danison, content director of Rentals.ca.

That price range is shocking to many.

"It’s ridiculous," said Amanda Sigurdson who lives in Victoria. "I really don’t know how anyone can live here."

Rentals.ca tracks the cost of renting a unit across the country. Here’s what it costs to rent, on average, in Greater Victoria.

• A one-bedroom rents for $1,870 a month. That’s up 14 per cent year over year.
• A two-bedroom goes for $2,900 a month. That the third highest price tag for a two-bedroom in Canada.
• A three-bedroom or more could run you more than $4,000, according to Rentals.

Stacking up against other cities in Canada, this region is certainly on the expensive side when it come to rent.

"Victoria basically is in the top 10, and certainly for a two-bedroom, it’s in the top three," said Danison.

'ABSOLUTELY AFRAID'

The B.C. government controls rental increases and leans on inflation to set the rate annually. With inflation soaring at nearly seven per cent, some fear we could see increases beyond last year's numbers at one and half per cent.

"We’re absolutely afraid of what rent increases will be next year because of the increases in inflation," said Doug King, executive director of the Together Against Poverty Society.

But King says that's just one concern. Another concern is that people who are displaced from their rentals these days, often after many years of living in the same place, find that a new unit is now out of reach.

"If they lose that housing, it’s a catastrophic consequence," said King. "You’re talking about a complete change in their lifestyle, rent might be double what it was before."

A lack of supply is a big factor when it comes to the cost of rent.

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) tracks rental housing starts in Canada and says last year was good when it comes to purpose-built rental builds.

"We had a 27 per cent increase from January to May compared to last year," said Pershing Sun, senior analyst with CMHC.

That was a banner year that hasn’t been seen since 1990. Now the rental starts have slowed down, but there is good news.

"We are seeing a more geographically balanced rental supply," said Sun.

That means new rentals are not just being built in the West Shore, but also in the downtown Victoria core and in Saanich as well.

The province says it’s reviewing the formula it uses to calculate allowable rent increases, but it's not hinting at what could be ahead for renters and landlords.